What a Gift! The Carl James Dunlap Memorial Fund is Sponsoring our 2025 NNL Summer Camp

Date: 
Monday, May 5, 2025
Eric Chudler teaches a group of students in front of a series of masks on the wall.

We can hardly believe it ourselves, but DO-IT is getting ready for our sixth annual Neuroscience for Neurodiverse Learners (NNL) summer camp! Because our federal funding was winding down as planned, we thought 2024 would be the final camp with our amazing partners at the UW Center for Neurotechnology (CNT).  

The camp in 2024, which was hosted at no cost to campers identifying as having one or more neurodivergent characteristics, was packed with learning opportunities. Dr. Eric Chudler, Associate Director and Director of Education at the CNT, offered several classes on neuroscience and related topics. DO-IT staff hosted sessions on mentoring, college preparation, useful technology, and more. It was an amazing year, and we were pleased that our “final camp” was such a good one. But then, something unexpected happened…

Carl James Dunlap

The program received a sizable donation from the leadership team at the Carl James Dunlap Memorial Fund, allowing us to offer the camp in 2025! The Fund provides scholarships to help students with disabilities achieve their educational goals.  Carl’s parents and godparents wanted to make a special gift this year to recognize how important DO-IT was to Carl and his success at UW. Now we’re planning our schedule, ordering supplies, and finalizing the recruitment of campers and instructors- all thanks to this generous gift. We will carry forward our policy of offering this experience at no cost to campers.

If you’re curious about the NNL summer program, check out this article in Seattle’s Child magazine and visit the NNL project website.

The Carl James Dunlap Memorial Fund also continues to fund student scholarships, disbursing six awards this year. The DO-IT Center is honored that we can continue to provide much needed programs, distribute scholarships on behalf of the Dunlap family, and celebrate the legacy of Carl James Dunlap by supporting students who continue to break barriers in pursuit of higher education.